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Bonaire is not like Aruba, is not known for its beaches but rather for the easy diving, snorkling from shore. There are a few nice small beaches but most of the shore is coral rubble. I believe two of the beaches are just south of where the ships dock. See bonairetalk.com (go to Topics) for anything you want to know about Bonaire.

A couple of years ago I did not take a tour through the ship but did hire a taxi and we toured the South side of the island. We enjoyed it. For some reason Mr. Gizmo wanted to see the moutains of salt which are on the South end. Well, we saw them. It looked just like the picture in the book. Our tour was similiar to the ship's tour. I did enjoy it, even though we had to look at mountains of salt. I did get some nice pix and saw flamingoes up close.

We were dropped off in town. We had a couple of cold beers at that bar that sits on the water.

There is a women that hangs out there signing up people for a snorkel tour.

Our last trip we went snorkeling. It was fantastic. The water is sooo clear.

We were cruising and stopped in Bonaire last week. The town was very pretty - no hard sales anywhere - and we walked through the shops and looked at everything. It didn't take very long.

None of the ship's tours appealed to us and there was still plenty of time left in the day. People had recommended walking down the road to a resort where for $12 each you could use their chairs and umbrellas. This seemed a little expensive for us since we probably wouldn't stay there too long and we'd heard that the beaches weren't that nice anyway.

We noticed some small beach areas right next to the ship, consisting of a thatched structure providing some shade, a bit of sand and stairs leading from the road down to the water. Some people were snorkelling right there and they said that there were tons of fish. So we ended up bringing our snorkel gear over there and paddling around enjoying the beautiful clear water, the sun and the proximity to the ship.

There's lots of coral around though, so you really need water shoes of some sort to protect your feet.

Any suggestion -- through the ship or on your own -- would be appreciated!

Happy Sailing! OCruisers

Oh yes! Take the water taxi tour to No Name Beach. It has the most AMAZING snorkeling. It was one of our favorite spots for snorkeling. You have the option of staying close to shore with pretty fish, or just going out about 20 ft. to water so deep you are in what seems like black water; but the fish are fantastic. We have some wonderful underwater pix there.

Yes, looking for great spots for snorkeling. Should we do a ship excursion, boat/snorkeling trip or just go somewhere and walk in? What about the Marine Park? Is that better than "No Name Beach" or somewhere else? Thanks

Any suggestions? We will be there for 7 hrs. How is the shopping? Beaches and sightseeing? Thanks!!

Shopping is the same as most small islands, Tee shirts and hats. You can find great places to eat. The city cafe has a happy hour 2 for one beer from 5 - 6 everyday. You can't beat the snorkling it is the best any where on the island. you can actually go to any resort and and snorkle off there peir. Will be there in July ourselves.

Yes, looking for great spots for snorkeling. Should we do a ship excursion, boat/snorkeling trip or just go somewhere and walk in? What about the Marine Park? Is that better than "No Name Beach" or somewhere else? Thanks

The Marine Park isn't an actual park. It the entire protected shoreline of the island. A small fee is collected for snorkeling or diving. I was just on the island and they did list a day pass, although most websites just list the annual fee.

No Name Beach is on Klein Bonaire, a small uninhabited island within the curve of the west coast on Bonaire. You can take a water taxi over from the downtown area, but there are no facilities (or shade) on Klein so you need to take plenty of water with you. It might be better to check out one of the snorkeling areas on the main island.

This not really a go it alone island. We were one of the first off the ship and never found a taxi! There were crowds of people waiting for one and we never found one. We gave up in the end as we were worried if we did find one we would never get back again. On our Princess cruise all the tours in Bonaire were booked up before the cruise started. If I had my time again I would definitely book a tour in plenty of time.

We walked off the ship, out past the buildings and caught a cab. No problem. They were not well marked here maybe that was the problem. We took a cab to a beach and when we were ready to leave there was another one waiting.

We just got back and had a fabulous time horseback riding. We discovered Marion of the Riding Acadamy when doing a web search for non-snorkeling shore excursions. Marion is one of those bubbly, chatty people who make the trip memorable and her tour guide, Charlie, took over our camera and gave us dozens of wonderful pictures to help us remember our swim with the horses. Oh, yeah, I didn't mention yet...you don't just put on a helmut and fall in line with 20 other people... the groups are always small so that you get very personal attention. You ride by the mangroves and flamingos, by an old salt flat, and you swim in Lac Bay at one of the most beautiful sandy beaches. Marion is picky about who goes, so get your reservations in fast. (I've only spent 1 week at a riding camp as a kid and have been on 2 trail rides since and I felt quite comfortable. The other 2 people on our ride have been coming back for years and unsaddled their own horses for the swim.)

Hi Janutz,
Horseback riding sounds great. I just emailed them to see if they have openings in October. How long was the 1/2 tour? Also, do you remember about how much it cost per person? My husband and I are extremely interested.
Thanks,
Nicole